The EIU view

The National League for Democracy will continue with its reform towards economic liberalisation, but progress on political reform will be limited ahead of the 2020 elections. Relations with China will strengthen as the West remains concerned about the plight of the ethnic-minority Rohingya. Domestic demand will be underpinned by high infrastructure investment, and Myanmar will continue to outperform its regional peers.

Latest coverage:

Chief minister removed on corruption charges
The National League for Democracy government seeks to tackle the country's endemic corruption. The number of high-ranking officials placed under investigation is likely to rise.

Myanmar/Cambodia: Rice tariffs reintroduced
Rice exporters from both countries will face tariffs of US$200 per tonne of rice for the first year. The European Commission will keep the rice tariffs in place for a further two years.

Garment workers strike in Yangon
This comes at a time when there is an increasing international focus on the garment sector. The state is likely to take only a piecemeal approach to improving workers' rights in 2019‑23.

Note: In 2006 the ruling military junta moved the country's administrative capital from Yangon to the town of Naypyidaw. In the text, places other than Myanmar and Yangon are referred to by their pre-1989 names. Pre-1989 place names appear in brackets on the map associated with this report.

January 1st (New Year's Day); January 4th (Independence Day); February 12th (Union Day); March 1st (Full Moon Day of Tabaung); March 2nd (Peasants' Day); March 27th (Armed Forces' Day); April 13th-17th (Thingyan, New Year); April 29th (Full Moon Day of Kasong, Buddha's birthday); May 1st (May Day); July 19th (Martyrs' Day); July 27th (Full Moon Day of Waso, start of Buddhist Lent); October 23rd-25th (Full Moon Day of Thadingyut, end of Buddhist Lent); November 21st-22nd (Full Moon Day of Tazaungmone); December 2nd (National's Day); December 25th (Christmas Day); December 31st (International New Year Eve Day); the exact timing of some lunar holidays depends on lunar sightings